Recipe: Toasted Muesli

Toasted muesli is one of those great, basic foods that make for a super quick, nutrient-dense breakfast. However, a lot of the store-bought mueslis that are available at the supermarket are full of added sugar (especially if marketed as "clusters" or "crunchy"). So, I make my own. I've been using this recipe for several years now and find it makes consistently good muesli. The beauty of this recipe is it is so easy to customise – simply swap out any ingredients you don’t like (or don’t have) with some of the others on the alternative ingredients list and voila!

Ingredients:

3 cups rolled oats

½ cup pumpkin seeds

½ cup sunflower seeds

½ cup of almonds, roughly chopped

½ cup buckwheat groats

1/3 cup hemp seeds

1/3 cup chia seeds

1/3 cup coconut flakes

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted

¼ cup maple syrup

Alternative ingredients to try: walnuts, cashews, macadamia nuts, cacao nibs (if using, add after cooking to avoid melting), pecans, sesame seeds, flax seeds

A note on dried fruit: A lot of muesli recipes use dried fruit (and a lot of it!). The main reason I don’t use dried fruit in my muesli is because of the high amount of sugar dried fruits contain. Eating a lot of sugar first thing in the morning sets us up for an energy crash in the mid afternoon and can prompt us to reach for even more sugar through the afternoon to keep us going. Instead, I recommend adding some fresh fruit to your muesli when you serve it. Berries like blueberries, strawberries and blackberries go well, as does grated apple (trust me, it’s good!). 

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 190C. 

2. Add all the ingredients to a bowl and mix together until the dry ingredients are coated with the oil and maple syrup and there are no more areas that look dry or unmixed. 

3. Spread the mixture onto an oven-safe tray/dish lined with baking paper or a silicone baking sheet and place in the oven. 

4. Allow the mixture to golden on top (takes about 5-10 minutes), then stir it and put back in the oven for a further 5-10 minutes. Repeat until your muesli is golden brown and crunchy looking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before transfering to an air-tight container and storing in the cupboard.

Serving size: 1/3 cup. 

Serve with Greek yoghurt (or coconut yoghurt if dairy-free/ vegan) and fresh fruit.

About the Author

Lizzie Stow is a degree-qualified naturopath from Newcastle, Australia.

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